2014 Consumer Electronics purchases : IHS, a leading global source of critical information and insight, announced that seven out of 10 U.S. consumers (68 percent) plan to buy consumer electronics (CE) during the 2014 holiday season. According to the 'U.S. Holiday CE Consumer Survey,' more than one third of respondents (37 percent) plan to make at least one electronics purchase on Black Friday, 32 percent plan to purchase online during Cyber Monday, and 50 percent expect to buy electronics some other time in November or December. "While the fourth quarter is always the most dynamic in terms of sales, mostly due to holiday spending, this year consumer confidence is very high," said Veronica Gonzalez-Thayer, senior analyst for consumer electronics at IHS Technology.

Production issues restrict Apple’s iPhone 6 release : Despite Apple’s plans of launching the iPhone 6 in late 2014, optical demands in handheld devices failed to generate price upticks in the sapphire substrate industry, according to LED inside, a research subdivision of market-research organization TrendForce. Sapphire ingot, substrate and patterned sapphire substrate prices all dropped in July 2014, with some product prices down 5%-10% Quarter-on-Quarter. The research organization noted optical demands lagged behind sapphire manufacturers’ production expansion, and order volumes have fallen short of expectations. In the sapphire ingot industry, 2-inch ingot prices were down to US $3.5-$4.0, while 2-inch sapphire substrate prices were maintained at US $6.8-$7.2.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Android phone : Fortemedia, the world leader in voice processing technologies, announced its ForteVoice iS620 was selected by Samsung Galaxy S5 to enhance the device’s voice processing solution for both handheld and speaker phone modes. ForteVoice has been adopted by several Samsung flagship products. The new Galaxy S5 Android phone demonstrates Fortemedia’s continual technology leadership in voice processing by being Samsung’s new generation flagship solution provider, thereby forging a long-term partnership between the two companies. ForteVoice iS620 has been adopted by many smart phone OEMs. It is available as part of the solution of Wolfson codec, as well as supporting Qualcomm open DSP which is available in Qualcomm’s multiple application processors.

5G network technology : An agreement signed in Seoul today is a milestone in the global race to develop 5G mobile technologies. Neelie Kroes, Vice-President of the European Commission for the Digital Agenda, and Mr. Mun-Kee CHOI, South Korea's Minister of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP) have agreed to work towards a global definition of 5G and to cooperate in 5G research. They also agreed on the need for harmonized radio spectrum to ensure global interoperability and on the preparation of global standards for 5G. The average 10-year time cycle between two generations of communications infrastructures is quickly shrinking. Therefore, now it's time to kick-start 5G investment and position European industrial players in order to seize the first-mover advantage.